


Phoenix

by starchitect



Category: Promare (2019)
Genre: Character Study, IDK what else to tell you, Lio is cold and Galo keeps him warm, M/M, Post-Canon, it got really sappy whoops, this is basically every Galolio fic which is just.
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-13
Updated: 2020-08-13
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:40:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,191
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25872256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starchitect/pseuds/starchitect
Summary: So Lio is now a pathetic weakling who’s also freezing to death. Fantastic.At least Galo doesn’t tease him for being cold all the time, or for having a lower tolerance to heat (he’s scorched his taste buds drinking coffee way too many times). In fact, no one seems to point out how different he is now. Not Gueira or Meis, or anyone at Burning Rescue. And especially not Galo. Galo will just smile and try to accommodate him in any way he can, be it lending him a jacket or turning up the thermostat in their shared apartment.And that’s another thing that Lio still has yet to get used to. Living together. With Galo.Galo,of all people.
Relationships: Lio Fotia/Galo Thymos
Comments: 8
Kudos: 96





	Phoenix

Lio can’t remember the last time he was genuinely cold.

He was able to maintain a high body temperature thanks to the Promare, and while he was only Burnish for a few years, it really felt like their fire was a part of him. It wasn’t until the Promare were sent back to their own dimension that he remembered that he used to be normal once.

He hates it. He can’t stand the absence of constant heat. It leaves him freezing and shivering most of the time, and he can’t believe that he went from being the leader of Mad Burnish to a helpless human popsicle.

Lio misses the Promare. Of course, he’s well aware of what their presence in the earth’s core did to the population, and would never go back to a life of constant running and hiding… But he still misses them, misses being a Burnish. He misses the Promare’s whispers, always in the back of his mind, and he misses the feeling of their steady heat, festering inside him, getting hotter and hotter. He misses being able to call upon their fire, to harness a blazing inferno with nothing but his bare hands, and being able to use that fire to travel. When Lio would once ride a flaming motorcycle, he now has to walk, especially since he doesn’t have a license for a car yet.

Lio hates being normal. Not that there’s anything wrong with being _free,_ and being able to live his life without Freeze Force coming after him and his people, but he hates feeling weak. When he was still Burnish, he felt unstoppable, and he liked how the flames at his fingertips made him feel _powerful._ He liked the feeling of being in control. The Promare residing in his body were really the only thing about his life he _could_ control, and he took a safety in that.

But now, Lio is just like everyone else in Promepolis. He’s normal. Ordinary. _Average._

And he despises that fact with every ounce of his being. He helped Galo save the world, and his reward is being stripped of all his power and everything that had become normal to him in the last few years. It’s not fair.

And sure, Meis and Gueira still call him _Boss,_ but it doesn’t make him feel any better. If anything it just reminds him that he’s still in denial about losing his fire. It’s pathetic.

So Lio is now a pathetic weakling who’s also freezing to death. Fantastic.

At least Galo doesn’t tease him for being cold all the time, or for having a lower tolerance to heat (he’s scorched his taste buds drinking coffee way too many times). In fact, no one seems to point out how different he is now. Not Gueira or Meis, or anyone at Burning Rescue. And especially not Galo. Galo will just smile and try to accommodate him in any way he can, be it lending him a jacket or turning up the thermostat in their shared apartment.

And that’s another thing that Lio still has yet to get used to. Living together. With Galo.

 _Galo,_ of all people. The person who Lio thought was his enemy when this whole thing started. He’s loud, and reckless, rough and unrefined. He doesn’t know when to shut up, and almost never thinks before he speaks. He’s smart when it counts, but most of the time, he’s just an idiot. Lio never thought they would end up working together to take down Kray, and yet, somehow the two of them make a good pair, despite their differences.

That’s the one thing that surprises him. He and Galo couldn’t be more different from each other, but somehow it just works. They balance each other out—hot and cold, day and night, Yin and Yang. It’s almost like they were made for one another. Of course, Lio would never say such a thing out loud, lest Meis and Gueira tease him to no end, but he can at least admit it to himself. He and Galo work well together. They complement each other. They’re a team.

And they’re living together. Alone. Just the two of them. Honestly, Lio would be lying if he said he hasn’t thought about the implications from time to time. He would also be lying if he said the thought of being something more with Galo doesn’t make him blush. It’s a little embarrassing, to be honest, but he can’t stop thinking about it. There’s just something about Galo that sets him ablaze in a way the Promare never did. Galo is warm and spirited like the Promare, fiery and passionate, but the difference between Galo and the Promare is that his fire is used to _protect._ His flaming soul is set on _preventing_ chaos and destruction instead of causing it.

Galo’s fire is just... _irresistable._

And Lio can’t get enough of it.

When the Promare returned to their home dimension, they left a hole in Lio’s soul that was difficult to fill. There was suddenly silence in his ears where there hadn’t been any in years. He was no longer hearing the desperate, hungry whispers of the Promare, telling him to _burn, burn, burn everything._ There was just...nothing.

And Lio was _cold._ He was so, so cold. The Promare had granted him a constant warmth for years, and to suddenly have that ripped away from him was so jarring. Lio hated it.

But then, there was Galo. Brilliant, beautiful Galo, with a soul that burned and shined like the sun, and with a comforting touch that set Lio on fire. He had carefully taken Lio’s delicate hands into his own, and quietly asked if he would like to stay at his place. At least until he could get his own, he said.

And Lio and said yes.

But it’s been months since that day, and Lio doesn’t really have any desire to leave. He’s grown so accustomed to Galo’s constant presence in his life. His warmth, his touch, his _everything._ The way he’s always lending Lio his jackets and blankets. The way he always wakes up early to cook breakfast for the two of them. And the way he always manages to make him laugh.

It’s all so awfully domestic. It’s sickeningly sweet, and Lio wouldn’t trade it for anything, not even the Promare. He doesn’t want to imagine a life without Galo.

Galo is the perfect balance for him. He’s the light to his darkness, the optimism to his negativity. He knows how to make Lio happy. Lio loves that about him.

When the Promare left, they left a deep absence in their wake. Getting used to normal life after having powers granted by fire aliens is hard to do. But somehow, Galo was able to fill the hole left behind by the Promare flawlessly. He kept Lio warm, he made him smile, he kept him company, and he never once treated Lio differently. He made him feel _powerful._

Galo has become Lio’s everything. And now, with every new day Lio spends with him, he misses the Promare less and less.

**Author's Note:**

> I watched Promare like four times in one week and this is the result


End file.
